Absolutely is the 2nd album by one of the most talented, innovative and most vibrant and exciting bands of all time and it is completely awesome from beginning to end. This album came out in 1980 and it is the follow up to their debut album One Step Beyond which was also fantastic as well.
Madness are one of the bands that have shaken off the musical mediocrity that has been plaguing popular chart music and have made music that is so out of the ordinary.
Madness are a very diverse band and their music consists of Ska, Reggae, Pop, 60's style Rockabilly, Motown.
The singles ''Baggy Trousers'' and ''Embarrassment'' are on this record but don't stay settled on those two songs because they are tasters of what this record actually sounds like. ''Absolutely'' is a very adventurous and eclectic album that will take you on a rollercoaster ride of your life. This is real evidence that Madness are truly a multi talented and eclectic band and yes, they evolved and devoloped throughout their journey and thankfully Madness are still going strong.
If you just stick to listening to their popular and well known single, you will miss out big time on the adventure of listening to their full albums. Do you want to go much deeper, you can get some of the remastered versions of some of the Madness records and you will be able to hear the original albums and also the B sides and different mixes. Their B sides are ever so incredible and it shows that Madness have taken some musical risks and have gone into more adventurous waters. The 2nd disc on the remastered version of ''Absolutely'' is Madness live in concert.
As you know, ''Absolutely'' is the 2nd Madness album, and personally i don't believe in the difficult second album syndrome. The problem is the major record industries compare the 2nd albums with the success of the debut albums and it bothers me because i am well interested in seeing bands and artists evolve and develop their music. So many 2nd albums are seriously underrated and i find that ever so disturbing. Bands have got to grow and develop whether people like it or not and it is no good playing it safe and going the easy way. It takes a lot of hard work and determination to really make music and it is not easy.
The fact is when you make a new album, you cannot repeat the albums you did previously and go through the motions. When you make a new album, you you got to move to the next level, you can't stay on level 1 time and time again and sound the same. You must be willing to grow as an artist and record even better songs. The difficult second album syndrome is a lie and you must never let it hinder and stifle your creativity. I have had enough of record companies contributing to the status quo when artists need a lot more freedom to be creative and explore different territories. There have been a lot of bands and artists who have taken a lot of risks and have defied the music norms and these are the bands and artists that have made music so much better and have paved the way for future music makers.
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